all white now

The weather’s been great, so we’ve been tackling some outdoor projects. This cinder-block chimney faces our side-patio –it’s in good shape, but just looks grubby and unloved. Painting is a (relatively) quick fix, but a big difference-maker.

You can see how yellowed the ‘white’ paint had become. After a thorough scrub, Karen (I leave most of the painting to her) just used a brush for most of it. We considered using a paint sprayer but the prep/clean-up wouldn’t have been worth it.

With the fireplace done, Karen actively looked for other things to paint…and I wasn’t getting in her way. Next target, our similarly yellowed cinder-block wall. This portion extends out from the office. On the other side is our front yard.

Again, it’s a big improvement, but now highlights things around it needing attention. The concrete slabs could use a pressure-wash. The gate/fence needs staining and repairing. The siding/beams need painting. The list goes on…

Next, we moved to the front, to trim our Loquat trees. We cut them right down after moving in, but they slowly crept back above house height. I didn’t take a ‘before’ shot (as I only meant to trim) but you can see them in the background here. Clearly, I got carried away.

They were quickly reduced to stumps. We planned on getting rid anyway, so no big deal. And it gave us room to paint. Next day, equipped with a larger blade, I cut them to ground level. We also added some rock, donated by a kind neighbor –thanks Zann!

Much better. We’ll add plants soon –for now, the minimal look suits us fine. Lastly, we tackled our tired-looking front beam. It doesn’t look too bad in this pic, so you’ll have to trust me. This was our first experiment with Bondo, the beam repairer’s friend.

What followed doesn’t make for an exciting picture series, so I’ll summarize –sanding, bondo-ing, more sanding, priming, yet more sanding, more priming, painting. Now the beam looks much better. Not perfect, but it is (almost) 60-years old.

Once we’ve painted the house gray, we’ll likely paint this beam either dark gray, to match the internal ceiling beams, or lime green, to match our front door. Two neighbors (unprompted) suggested the latter, so we’re giving it serious consideration.

You have a VERY nice Eichler. I am kind of in love with lime green. My issue is I use them, then regret it. I have been trying to have a restrained hand lately. Unfortunately I bought some bright furniture patio furniture recently in a brash moment of reckless color abandon.

Thanks Rebecca, very kind of you to say so! We’ve had a long love affair with lime green, and don’t show any signs of letting-up. Another lime-related post is coming up, actually. And don’t worry, “reckless color abandon” is good for the soul…I’m sure of it! 🙂

Thanks Karolina –we love the white too! And yeah, the gray siding should make such a difference. I don’t mind the brown, and I believe it’s very similar to the original color of our house, but it’s just not us. Your house, on the other hand, looks a really nice color already. Maybe it looks darker in-person, but I like the gray –it’s actually pretty similar to the gray we’ll be using, I think. In any case, look forward to seeing the direction you take. Catch you soon…

Love your home. I am struggling with exterior paint color in my 1967 ranch and have been debating grey with a grey brown trim. Do you have a grey picked out? Would love to know the color you are considering.

Hi Kerry, and thank you! We do have a gray picked out, but it was a longer process than expected. Our problem was wanting a ‘pure gray’ –in reality, there’s no such thing. It will always have a leaning towards blue, green, brown, red, whatever. In your case, this shouldn’t be an issue. We got somewhat obsessed with finding as true a gray as possible. We got close. You can see what we ended up with here: http://fogmodern.com/palette-tweaks/ and here’s the first thing we painted: http://fogmodern.com/the-right-gray/ (after a false start, that is). It’s amazing how much light affects color. Obvious really, but we’ve never been made so aware of it. I would paint a board or something and carry it around the outside of your house, to see it in different lights, at various times of the day. Better still, paint sections of the house…if you don’t mind odd looks from the neighbors. Good luck! And thanks for stopping by!